r/f1visa

Just received my first offer post grad (search has been brutal since May). I also just got my EAD card for initial OPT. It’s a remote job and they have offered 70k with no bonuses at all. The posted range was 70-90k but it’s an entry level role so I was expecting to be in the lower half of the range (they even told me that). However, when the director of finance asked, I said ideally I would like 80k but can work around a 75-80k range.

My question is, given the current market and also the uncertainty with immigration, is it worth it to try to negotiate salary? My gut says there’s no harm in trying to get more but you never know. At the end of the day, I am a recent grad (with two coops but that’s not really truly professional experience) so there’s that.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently on F-1 status and recently received an RFE for my post-completion OPT (I-765). I graduated in May 2026 and applied for post-completion OPT.

The RFE is primarily asking for additional evidence regarding:

1. F-1 maintenance of status – academic program, full course of study, course syllabi, course modality/attendance, tuition payments, transcripts, and financial records.

2. Address history – complete address history while I was enrolled as an F-1 student.

3. Employment history – employment dates, employer letters, pay stubs/W-2s, bank statements, and an explanation of how I funded my education and living expenses.

I am currently working through the RFE item by item and collecting all the requested documentation. My DSO is also helping me with the university-specific documents and letters, but they have clarified that they cannot review my complete RFE response package before I submit it to USCIS.

Has anyone been in a similar situation and successfully responded to an F-1 OPT RFE? If anyone is comfortable sharing a sample RFE response, outline, exhibit organization, or even a redacted version of the response package, that would be extremely helpful as I work on putting mine together. I'm especially interested in seeing how others organized and presented the evidence to USCIS.

I am also looking for an F-1 immigration attorney who can review my completed RFE package before I submit it, rather than necessarily taking on full representation. I'm hoping to find someone who offers an affordable consultation/document-review service, as I am a recent graduate.

Thank you!

Just wanted to share an update for anyone at Purdue who may be planning to apply for CPT.
I spoke directly with my DSO about my upcoming CPT application. I was told that, for now, they cannot issue/approve my CPT authorization because of the new memo regarding CPT.
My understanding from the conversation is that this is temporary, not necessarily a permanent suspension or a final policy change. The university needs additional time to review the memo, understand its implications, and determine how CPT applications should be handled going forward.
So basically, my CPT is currently on hold while Purdue studies the new guidance.
Has anyone else at Purdue, or at another university, been told something similar by their DSO? I’m particularly interested in whether other schools have temporarily paused CPT applications while they review the memo.

Hey, I recently posted about my initial OPT being denied. Turns out my DSO didn’t cancel previous I-20 before submitting the new one and USCIS pulled the old one which was past 30 days.

Now I’m waiting on him to get a letter to apply to the motion to reopen. I need advice on what to do with my case also, my sisters which did the same the week before (she requested a new one a week before me and applied march 29). She has not gotten any response and also misssed to sign her I-20. We are pretty clueless on what to do now since the DSO might have done the same with her I-20 on SEVIS. I asked him about it since she was about to pay for premium processing.

Please let me know if you know of any lawyer or service that could help us.

I know many of you are nervous about the recent D/S elimination that will come in effect starting September 15, 2026. A lawsuit today was filed in the federal court of Massachusetts in this matter. Let’s tune in!

If you have access to PACER, you can read more detail:

Court: U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
Case number: 1:26-cv-13799
Filed: August 18, 2026

I graduated in May and have been job hunting on OPT since. The part that wore me down wasn't the applications, it was not knowing which companies would even consider sponsoring before I spent an hour on a cover letter.

So I pulled the Department of Labor's raw filing data and built something searchable over it. 799,016 filings, July 2023 to June 2026, 78,682 employers.

What it's useful for if you're where I am:

• Type a company name, see whether they sponsor at all, for which roles, in which cities, at what pay
• Filter to your occupation and state and get an actual list of employers who file there
• Check whether a salary offer is above or below what that company typically files for your role
• See which employers are newly sponsoring versus ones that have been at it for years

The distinction that changed how I search. A company filing thousands of petitions can still be hiring almost nobody new most of those filings are renewals for people already working there. The tool splits them out. Cognizant: 5,779 filings in FY2026, 13 net-new positions. Qualcomm: 855 filings, all net-new. If you're applying from outside, the second company is the one worth your time, and raw filing counts would rank them the other way round.

Also worth knowing before you read too much into recent numbers: the October 2025 government shutdown took DOL's filing system offline for a month, so that quarter has roughly two months of data in it. The tool flags it rather than letting you compare it to a normal quarter.

Please read this part: an LCA is not a job offer, not an approved visa, and not proof anyone got hired. It's the wage filing that comes before the actual petition. Employers file more than they use. It tells you a company is willing to sponsor, which is the question you actually needed answered — but it does not tell you they're hiring you.

Free, open source, no login, runs entirely in your browser. Built it for my own search and there was no reason to keep it to myself.

Still looking for data engineering roles myself, so if this helps you land something, that's a better outcome than it sitting on my laptop.

Link - https://perspective-minority-animal-fri.trycloudflare.com/

My anxiety has been through the roof since 2025 for obvious reasons. I was able to drown it out before with work but now that I'm waiting for my OPT EAD/job hunting/thesis writing it's back with a vengeance. How have you guys been managing your mental health?

Hi everyone! I applied for OPT on April 25, 2026, and completed biometrics on May 22. My job was supposed to start last week, and my employer has already pushed my start date, but I’m not sure how much longer they’re willing to wait.

I’m considering Premium Processing, but after waiting almost 4 months, I’m worried my regular decision may already be close.

Has anyone with a similar timeline been approved recently? Or switched to premium after waiting this long? How quickly did you get a decision?

I just received an email my work authorization has been approved under PP with starting and end date but it’s not reflecting on my uscis portal yet. Is that how the initial approval is?

Hi everyone,

I received an email confirming that my post-completion OPT was approved, but when I log into my USCIS online account, the case status still hasn’t changed and I don’t see an approval notice yet.

Has anyone else experienced this?

For anyone who received the approval email before USCIS updated:

• How long did it take for your USCIS case status to change?
• When did the approval notice appear under Documents?
• How long after that did your EAD card get produced/mailed?
• Should I consider the email confirmation reliable even though the USCIS portal hasn’t caught up yet?

I’m especially curious about anyone who went through premium processing and/or an RFE, since that’s my situation.

Would really appreciate hearing your timelines. Thank you!

Hi everyone, I’m really worried about a situation that happened recently and need advices. I was behind on rent and tuition and was under a lot of financial stress and really pressured to find a job. I applied only to jobs related to my major - Business Management, and I got a job in Marketing and Sales.
Before starting the job, I was trying to meet with my school’s International Student Advisor to ask about CPT, but my appointment was canceled, and I found out that she would be out of the office for the entire summer. I misunderstood the situation and thought I could start working and then obtain CPT when the advisor returned. I did not understand at the time how serious it could be to work before receiving CPT.

After working for about 2 weeks, I googled my situation and found out it can be a major issue that I don’t have a CPT when working so I called in to stop work immediately. I understand that I should never started working without CPT and I’m not trying to justify it. I am trying to understand what my options are and, especially, whether this could affect my ability to obtain OPT after graduation.

I’m also very afraid to talk to my DSO because I have read that they are required to terminate my SEVIS based on unauthorized employment. My SEVIS record is currently still Active.

Here is my exact timeline:
July 16, 2026: I went to my employer for about 2 hours for onboarding/paperwork. I completed employment paperwork, including an I-9 and W-4. I did not actually perform the job duties that day.
Before I started actually working, I immediately asked my employer for an offer letter because I needed it for CPT. They told me they would provide it immediately.
July 21, 2026: I actually started performing work.
July 21–July 30: I continued working while repeatedly following up with my employer about the offer letter.
July 30, 2026: My employer finally gave me the offer letter. By this point, I had already been working for 9 days. I did not have a CPT-authorized I-20 during this period.
August 6, 2026: I realized that working without CPT right now could be a serious F-1 status violation, so I stopped working immediately.

So my actual work period was approximately 17 days. My SEVIS record is currently still active, and I have not yet spoken with my DSO because I am afraid that disclosing the unauthorized employment can result in SEVIS termination immediately and affect my future CPT/ OPT eligibility.

I have heard conflicting things about whether past unauthorized employment automatically prevents an F-1 student from getting CPT/ OPT, so I would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experience with this.

Also this upcoming Fall semester, I have to take a class that requires to take an internship to graduate, which is MGT 401 and I will definitely need a CPT for that too yet I’m afraid they will check employment history and see my past unauthorized work.

My main questions are:

Could my DSO terminate it immediately if I disclose the unauthorized employment?

Has anyone personally experienced unauthorized employment and then successfully obtained CPT/ OPT afterward?

If my SEVIS remains active through graduation, could this past unauthorized employment prevent me from getting post-completion OPT?

Does the fact that I requested the offer letter before starting work, but the employer didn’t provide it until July 30, matter at all?

If SEVIS were terminated, what are the realistic options for reinstatement or obtaining a new I-20, and how could that affect OPT eligibility later?

Should I get an F-1 immigration attorney before telling my DSO, or is it generally better to disclose the situation to the school immediately?

I’m hoping to hear from people who have actually gone through something similar and how you dealt with it, or anyone who was able to obtain OPT afterward.

Thank you so much for reading and for any experiences or advice you can share.

TL;DR: I worked without CPT for about 17 days and stopped as soon as I realized the seriousness of it. My SEVIS is still active, but I’m worried about possible termination and whether this could affect my future OPT eligibility. Has anyone experienced something similar and successfully gotten OPT afterward?

Just found out UM is pausing their CPT program because of the new guidance until further clarification. I am devastated.

Hi everyone! I graduate in December 2026, Unfortunately I didn't end up getting any internship offers this summer and I have no potential full time offers yet.

I've been told, you can apply for OPT either 90 days before the program end date or 60 days after. In my case, what would be the best case scenario to apply for OPT? I want to be extremely cautious.

Hi everyone!
I applied for my OPT in June and I’m currently waiting for approval and my EAD card. I wanted to hear from people who have recently gone through the process.
For those who applied around May, June, or July, how long did it take for your OPT to get approved and for you to actually receive your EAD card? I’m trying to get a realistic idea of the current timeline based on people’s recent experiences.
Also, I wanted to ask about the job market. For those currently on OPT or recently approved, how has your job search been?
Do you feel like companies are open to hiring candidates on F-1/OPT, or has the visa/work authorization situation made it significantly harder to get interviews and offers? How long did it take you to find a job?
I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially from people who have been applying for jobs recently.
Thanks!

So, the new CPT pause is breaking my heart. Especially when people have probably lined up a coop or an internship. And now you're telling me we can't authorize those. What are your thoughts on this getting resolved ? Berkeley director said that it is a significant pause and will be getting resolved soon. But how soon is that ?

Also, people that say "CPT is always been integral", yes i agree, but the memo forces a certain interpretation of integral, which imo isn't fair.

I see not a lot of people trying to be optimistic, so i am taking one for the team - i hope it's resolved in the next week or so. (May sound delusional)

Hi everyone,
I’m currently on initial post-completion OPT and I’m approaching the end of my 90-day unemployment limit. I already have a job offer and am ready to start working, but my EAD card still hasn’t arrived.

I don’t want to overstay or risk exceeding the 90-day unemployment limit while waiting for my EAD, so I’m planning to leave the U.S. soon.

One additional complication is that my F-1 visa was revoked last year. However, I remained in the U.S. legally, maintained my F-1 status with a new valid I-20, and completed my program.

If I leave the U.S. before my EAD arrives, and the EAD is later delivered to my U.S. address, could my relatives send the physical EAD card to me in my home country? would I be able to return to the U.S. to start my OPT job? Do I need to renew the F-1 Visa while I’m in my country?

I’m mainly concerned about whether leaving the U.S. before receiving my EAD—and my previous F-1 visa revocation—would prevent me from returning.

Has anyone been in a similar situation or gone through something like this?
Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Good day! I’m from the Philippines and I’m planning to apply for a student visa in the USA to pursue a STEM MBA in Healthcare Administration for nurses.

I have a few questions and would really appreciate your advice based on your experience. According to the agency, international students are allowed to work up to 20 hours per week. Is this enough to cover living expenses such as food and housing, as well as tuition fees?

Secondly, would I be allowed to work in the USA as a Registered Nurse during my OPT? The agency also advised me to take the NCLEX while I am studying in the USA.

I would really appreciate any advice or information you can share. Thank you so much!

My previous F-1 program ended May 4, 2026. My SEVIS record is now “Completed” (not terminated). My post-completion OPT (I-765) was denied — USCIS said it was filed more than 30 days after the DSO’s SEVIS recommendation.

I’m seeking admission to a new program, specifically a Day 1 CPT school. Can a university issue me a new initial I-20 with a new SEVIS ID given my record shows Completed? Would I need to depart and re-enter the US to start the new program? I have a valid F-1 visa.

What are my options here — is this route realistic, and has anyone done this after a similar denial?

Has anyone experienced in their initial OPT case, not seeing any API update, and the status after upgrading to premium processing be “Case Was Changed To A Premium Processing Case”? At this point, I’m super stressed about it because everyone gets an API update, and mine still has the same timestamp or date as when I upgraded to PP in July 22nd.

eventCode":"PAD","createdAt":"2026-07-22","createdAtTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:45.933Z","updatedAt":"2026-07-22","updatedAtTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:45.933Z","eventDateTime":"2026-07-22","eventTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:45.068Z"},bb91-35b235739844","eventCode":"PAA","createdAt":"2026-07-22","createdAtTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:44.998Z","updatedAt":"2026-07-22","updatedAtTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:44.998Z","eventDateTime":"2026-07-22","eventTimestamp":"2026-07-22T04:09:44.397Z"},

Thanks 🥺✨